Guy Lombardo - You Didn’t Have to Tell Me (1931)

You Didn’t Have to Tell Me (I Knew it All the Time) Words and music by Walter Donaldson Performed by Guy Lombardo and His Royal Canadians Vocal refrain by Carmen Lombardo Recorded January 13, 1931 Columbia 2379-D This song was written by Walter Donaldson (1893 - 1947) who was one of the top composers of American popular music with a huge output during the 1920s with numerous hits including “My Buddy“, “My Blue Heaven“, “Yes, Sir, That’s My Baby“, “At Sundown,“ “Love Me or Leave Me“, “Makin’ Whoopee“, “Little White Lies“, “My Mammy“ and “Your Driving Me Crazy.“ He collaborated often with lyricists like Gus Kahn, Sam Lewis, Joe Young, Edgar Leslie, Johnny Mercer, and Harold Adamson. In his early years he worked for a New York brokerage firm then as a pianist for a music publisher. During World War I he entertained the troops 19 months at Camp Upton, N Y and later worked for Irving Berlin’s publishing company, then his own company, Donaldson, Douglas and Gumble in 1928. In the early 1930s he worked in H